The Castaways (2023– ) User Reviews

Came for a lost type series, but left lost in the countless plot holes!es i

[mad_max_fury · 5/10 · 26 December 2023]

I'm glad it was only 5 episodes as after the first 2 I wanted to give in but I persevered to see if it got better. It didn't

Both Sheridan and Celine were excellent, with the rest of the cast acting very well in the series.

However, even though the plot is intriguing, the reason for the plane crash is just ridiculous, and the plethora of plot holes are extremely annoying.

The major one being why Mike the pilot decided to use Lori's bloody credit card at a local supermarket despite having hundreds of thousands of dollars at home in his fridge. This stupidity led to the sister finding out and starting the whole search in Fiji. And the eyerolls continue throughout

This is meant to be an adaptation of the novel with the same name, and I honestly can't see how a novel would be released with these glaring holes, so I'll be reading it next hoping i don't waste even more time. More than likely, its a very poor adaptation.

Other than that, great location and filmed well.

The only plus I get from the series is wishing I had been on the plane when it crashed, as the island looked beautiful and far from the insufferable world we live in.

Easy Watching

[zoeem · 7/10 · 27 December 2023]

I enjoyed this series, the acting is good and the locations beautiful. There are some loopholes but not major enough to spoil the story. This is basically a story of how far someone will go to hide an affair and the determination of one woman in a quest to find her sister. An easy to watch tv show that will keep you entertained.

Ignore the over-the-top negative reviews and judge this for yourself, it would be a shame to miss it based on someone else's review. It is a tv series not a Hollywood movie!

I recommend giving this a watch and just enjoying it for what it is, no need to think too deeply about the realities.

Not quite the plane crash others are saying. But its not a first class flight either.

[petelaws · 6/10 · 30 December 2023]

The scathing reviews of this show are a bit over-the-top I must say. It's not that bad, in fact, I would even go as far as to say its good. Not brilliant by any stretch, but at less than 5 hours in total, it's decent enough to waste away an evening or two with some mindless escapism. Now I haven't read the book, nor was I aware of it's existence until now, so this review is based on being standalone and will not be compared to the literature.

The story interchanges between "then", which is about Lori, who is stranded on an uninhabited island following a plane crash. And "now", which follows her sister Erin, a journalist who's obsession with finding Lori has understandably taken over her life. Months have passed since the plane fell from the sky and marooned a handful of survivors on the island and over the course of the story we learn that there are several survivors who have a good reason to never be found. Things go missing, mystery traitors sabotage progress, and despite apparently being a team, the isolated group start to turn on each other until the now and then catch up with each other as we enter the climax of the story. All along the way, Erins investigation drives the plot and reveals the secrets of the past.

There's nothing here that is groundbreaking, the dialogue can be iffy but the actors mostly play their parts well and the mystery elements keep you guessing throughout. The main downside for me was the little things that take the realism away. They settle in to life on a desert island remarkably easily, with little struggle and are mostly perfectly presented throughout. No sunburn or tanning to be seen, never do we see them struggle for food or water and the rate they seem to learn how to twine, thatch and build from the islands limited resources is quite remarkable.

That all being said, the story and mystery is entertaining enough to make this worth a watch, even if you do have to suspend your disbelief sometimes and ignore the odd plot hole. As long as you don't go in expecting Emmy worthy television and are prepared for some mindless entertainment, then you won't be disappointed.

6/10.

Do not expect Robinson Crusoe ;-)

[kms-91461 · 6/10 · 1 January 2024]

And you will not be dissapointed.

If however you would think it will show similar struggle to survive, you will be hugely dissapointed. There is almost nothing about this, how to settle on a deserted island with no human presence at all. From one part to another there are huts, they know how to fish, they have food and water, although complaining it is not sufficient.

Of course setting is fantastic, nature itself is worth watching.

The plot is very unrealistic and sometimes ridiculous, but the scale of it is not more, than in an average criminal story.

Acting is average and uneven. I am afraid Sheridan Smith is not convincing at all. The best of the cast is Lasarus Ratuere.

So, if it rains and you have already walked your dog, make yourself a nice cup of tea and relax watching this beautiful island.

Hmmm passes the time, that's what I'll say

[Amar47792 · 6/10 · 2 April 2024]

Episode 1 is nothing to write home about and if I'm honest, and it wasn't Easter, I would not have watched any further. As it is, I found myself starting to watch episode 2 in the hope that this would get better. I mean, who doesn't like a good old fashioned marooned on a desert island story, especially when it has characters who survive a plane crash! Background stories were vaguely interesting but didn't really add much to the plot. There are a few annoying scenes when one thinks for heavens sake, you're on an island and need to be in survival mode and not rock the boat the more you find out about your fellow survivors.

Anyway, it didn't get any better but I found myself watching it all.

If you have nothing better to do and appreciate Sheridan Smith (even though I did find her annoying in a couple of scenes, but overall, terrific actress), maybe you'll like it more than the 6 stars I gave it - which was being generous!

Wasted my boxing day.

[sumk-21209 · 1/10 · 27 December 2023]

Tbis popped up on boxing day and seemed intriguing. It started of ok then became a chick flick and lost all senses. A terrible show with plenty of plot holes and annoying acting by both main characters.

I can't understand how the director or author thought to proceed with such stupidity in the discovery of the whereabouts, there was nothing intelligent about this and it seems to underestimate the IQ of the audience.

The final scenes also dragged, I found myself forwarding a lot of it as I'd already committed, but they just became annoying and it turned from a thriller into a full on chick flick. I would not recommend this and encourage you to save your time.

A bit daft

[ftdcnjq · 6/10 · 28 December 2023]

I did enjoy this series but to be honest it was a little bit cheesy and daft. They all seemed to take living on a deserted beach like ducks to water.

I didn't feel like the story was based on any type of reality of actually living on an abandoned island. I did however enjoy the general idea of it and it was fun to watch.

At the end I couldn't help but notice how pristine the survivors clothes were. Looked liked they had a secret dry cleaners on that island. Not to mention Lorri's minimal roots. Secret hairdressers too maybe? It's little things like that that take the viewer out of the story. Overall worth a watch.

Started Good.

[destiny_west · 4/10 · 28 December 2023]

Whilst looking for something to binge I stumbled across The Castaways. The plot looked interesting, so I thought I would give it a go.

The first episode is interesting, even the second. However, then things just get a little too 'out there' for me. Maybe convoluted is the better term of expression.

You start to feel invested in the characters, then something happens and you are like oh okay, but it is not in a good way, it feels like the director/author has just thrown everything at the screen hoping it will stick. You start to dislike everyone involved and I battled to watch the end. Shame.

lesser plane crash

[SnoopyStyle · 6/10 · 15 January 2024]

Lori (Sheridan Smith) and Erin Holme (Celine Buckens) are close-knitted sisters on vacation to Fuji. Erin does not make it on the plane after a fight. The plane goes missing. It's months later and everybody is assumed dead. The only one holding out hope is Erin. She is certain that they survived and are stranded somewhere. Nobody believes her. Then she finds evidence to support her view.

Ever since Lost, plane crash stories have become almost a genre to its own. This one puts a bit of a mystery spin to the concept within a limited series. It's an interesting idea and a lower level British show. Some of plot elements are rather outlandish and unfinished. I don't mind Celine Buckens and her obsessive pursuit. The island situation reminds me of many other Lost copies. What the island really needs is an opening murder to heighten the tension. I may have given this a better rating but the last episode really drags on and on. They could cut two thirds of that finale.

First 3 episodes, not bad ....... but after that!

[rodw-77-924268 · 3/10 · 2 January 2024]

I enjoyed the first three episodes. It built the suspense and you knew something was going on but you were not sure what.

Yes, it had a bit of a feel like a low budget New Zealand series (sorry NZ), with quirky spirited actors, fresh bright scenery and a few implausible bits but you could look past those and enjoy the ride, just expecting a bit of fun.

But then......

Episode 4 started and it all fell off the rails with the whole country hick vibe of the local police and lots of just, well.... dumb people. It just dragged on and when the episode was over I wondered how they were going to fill out the last episode.

But they did! .....with lots more really dumb people doing really dumb things that made absolutely no sense.

It was like whoever had written the first 3 episodes left and got a class of 12 year olds to write the rest plus all the actors had been swapped out with dumber doubles.

The second half felt like an episode of 1970's Magnum PI, comedy and all, only it wasn't meant to be a comedy.

A lot of potential, great scenery, seemed to have a decent budget but some of the cast were very thin and that was emphasised by a completely lacking storyline.

I don't know why it has so many bad reviews

[gemmawallace-64212 · 8/10 · 30 December 2023]

I don't know why it had so many bad reviews. Yeah there are plot holes bur overall an enjoyable watch, mindless escapism with some good twists and turns.

I don't know why it had so many bad reviews. Yeah there are plot holes bur overall an enjoyable watch, mindless escapism with some good twists and turns.

I don't know why it had so many bad reviews. Yeah there are plot holes bur overall an enjoyable watch, mindless escapism with some good twists and turns.

I don't know why it had so many bad reviews. Yeah there are plot holes bur overall an enjoyable watch, mindless escapism with some good twists and turns.

Bad adaptation

[debirwin-82946 · 3/10 · 27 December 2023]

I stumbled upon the book and finished reading it a couple of weeks ago, I enjoyed it. So when I got the Christmas radio times and stumbled across the interview with Sheridan I was quite excited to learn that a tv series was launching Boxing Day and had high hopes for it.... Unfortunately, It's badly written, badly directed and has deviated away from the original story line; huge mistake! I'm pretty shocked that the talented Sheridan Smith took this one on. I can only assume that she owed someone a favour or lost a bet when accepting the part. Not at all worth viewing. I lost count at the amount of times I had to flick my eyes back to the front of my head. It's utter crap!

It's a masacre of an exceptionally good book!

[Mina77 · 1/10 · 29 December 2023]

Do not watch this ridiculous adaptation of a really great book! Especailly if you have read the book - just skip this, you'll be grateful as it will not ruin the book for you, as it almost did for me. They have made so many changes compared to the book (for the worse, obvs), without even utilising so many interesting details the book provided! They've ruined the original plot! Sheridan Smith - I do love her, but this is awful - her pouting, her bleeched teeth, her bad acting, and the ending?! She actually has a full make-up on in the last scene, lipstick/gloss included, come on! IT'S HORRIBLE.

Holy s***, i want my 5 Hours back

[mail-75989 · 2/10 · 30 December 2023]

Friends, although everything has already been said, I would still like to add my juice (hopefully briefly).

The series consists of 5 episodes of around 40 minutes each. As the previous speakers have already mentioned, the series consists of the "Now" where Erin, the younger sister of the two main protagonists, sets off in search of her sister's missing plane, and the "Then" which deals with the crash.

From the very first episode, we are struck by the highly stereotypical behaviour of a young adult. "The young, naive protagonist doesn't want to acknowledge reality and throws around some crazy theories about the disappearance of the plane in question. She finds herself in a kind of Facebook group of obsessives who are all looking for the wreckage" etc.... You've certainly heard it before, but well... you can't reinvent the wheel every time, although a little creativity would certainly have done some good here.

Anyway, she falls out with the people who give her a home (who are apparently also her lawyer?), she makes them an offer to make her go away for good... blah blah blah. So she then flies to Fiji where she finds the pilot of the crashed plane (the way she found out was quite interestingly done, he used her sister's credit card, then that mysterious Facebook group was used to find the location of the transaction and so on. Here you can't think too hard about whether it's actually possible or not, but it's still a tv-show so let's give it a rest.

Suddenly the antagonist appears, where you somehow never really find out why she is the antagonist, why she is also looking for the plane... no idea, could also be because I regularly skipped 3-4 minutes from episode 3 onwards because the dialogues became too long-winded.

In the meantime, of course, the "Then" went through the standard survival routine of "oh no, what do we do now... let's make a big fire and everyone insists on their privacy so no one can take inventory"... with Lori, the other sister, having slight Karen-like traits. The pilot who was still on the island at the time eventually pulled out a map to assess where the plane had crashed... saying that they were on an island that was uninhabited and therefore unmapped. The next island is ages away and there are no fishing boats because of two currents....

Listen, whatever was said there was simply ignored in the course of the film. There was an island nearby later on with a tarmac, hangars etc. They were deserted, but nobody can tell me that this map was never mapped when there was a HANGAR AND A ROLLING FIELD... oh, and there was a paved road and a tower too. Also, the island was close enough to the crash island that you could see a signal post???

And then the main hook: the cause of the crash was a thunderstorm, but somehow the pilot and a "colleague" had a common plan to disappear because the "colleague" had a woman who fell in love with him and... I honestly have no idea, I didn't get through it. In any case, the motif seemed totally over the top and more unrealistic than any Marvel film.

So, a few points to summarise:

Even if you don't think about it, you inevitably realise how ill-conceived this whole series was. Plotholes galore, things make no logical sense and the protagonists obviously have an IQ lower than a three-year-old toddler. You just can't tell me that adults (btw Lori, who was the older sister of the two main characters, looked like she was in her late 40s when the younger sister might have just been 20? Could be, of course, but c'mon... honestly? Didn't seem very convincing).

Save yourselves the 5 hours, you've actually already read everything that happens here. Stupidly, I have a talent for wasting lifetimes on stuff like this, but hey... at best I can prevent you from making the same mistake.

Worst stinker ever made, stay away at all cost.

[psxexperten · 1/10 · 8 February 2024]

Oh, wow, as they say, the time wasted watching this nonsense can never be retrieved!

The first 3 minutes were good and gave you great expectations. Then went down hill fast like a avalanche.

This is probably the worst tv I have ever watched in my lifetime. Not only is the plot full of holes, it would do justice to a colander, but the acting is atrocious. All you see is relentless pout and white veneers, it is embarrassing.

But, oh wow, the plot, SO BAD. The writing, even worse.

The acting was adequate, but wow did this drag on and on.

After investing so much time, I really wanted to see what happened at the end.

Oh my goodness, what a CRAZY, unlikely, ridiculous ending!

Please do yourself a favor.... Don't watch this garbage!

Highly entertaining

[jenniewrennie · 8/10 · 2 January 2024]

I really enjoyed this five-part show, I thought it was the perfect binge watch for Boxing Day. Yes there are a few weak/unrealistic plot points but overall it was very entertaining. I thought Sheridan Smith was fantastic - nice to see her in a different type of role with more action. The other actors were good too. The setting was beautiful and the now and then timelines came together nicely at the end. People are so quick to pick holes in everything, just sit back and enjoy the ride!

If you enjoyed this look out for another Lucy Clarke adaptation on Paramount called No Escape, based on her book The Blue.

AWFUL

[mickeygreyeyes · 1/10 · 28 December 2023]

This is probably the worst tv I have ever watched in my lifetime. Not only is the plot full of holes, it would do justice to a colander, but the acting is atrocious, especially Sheridan Smith. All you see is her relentless pout and white veneers, she is embarrassing. Why Paramount picked this up is beyond me. This could have been done in 30 minutes and i cannot fathom how they managed to stretch it out to 5 episodes. It reminded me of a teen movie from the fifties with Sheridan playing the 16 year old in a 40 year old body, unbelievable. Even the police were made out to be amateur part timers, this I'm sorry to say is instantly forgettable.

The Cockamamie Castaways!!!!!

[OrganicallyGrown · 1/10 · 27 December 2023]

Oh, wow, as they say, the time wasted watching this nonsense can never be retrieved!

This is the most convoluted, contrived, cockamamie storyline I have had the misfortune of trying to follow in a VERY, VERY long time. It's so difficult these days to find anything to watch without numerous agendas inserted into the script, that I thought that maybe this mini-series might be different. Well, other than the usual angelic & wise blk people trope, it was far less annoying in that respect.

But, oh wow, the plot, SO BAD. The writing, even worse.

The acting was adequate, but wow did this drag on and on.

After investing so much time, I really wanted to see what happened at the end.

Oh my goodness, what a CRAZY, unlikely, ridiculous ending!

The woman who was stranded on the island DECIDES TO STAY BEHIND, after her sister risks life and limb to rescue her and the closing scene shows that she is now PREGNANT with her island lover's baby.

The ISLAND is uninhabited by humans!!! When their son or daughter grows up they will be ALL ALONE after their parents die and they will die alone, unless they have siblings and even then, one of them will die first, leaving the other ALL ALONE.

Also, they'll never be able to marry and reproduce, well, unless of course they sleep with their sibling. (How terrible!) Are you all getting how weird and selfish this is? Awful, just awful!

Its been compared to Lost by some.......

[jamesstean · 3/10 · 31 December 2023]

..... a plane crashes on a remote island and there are survivors and thats where the similarity ends. Each episode deals with the present time (NOW) and the island (THEN).

Every character cliche for any survival based series and movie is here. Add to this, that the characters are unbelievably dimwitted. It doesn't help that the acting of this group is atrocious. This sums up the THEN portion, trust me, there is no more depth to it than that.

On to the NOW portion, the only reason it gets 4 stars. The plot holes are numerous and the main actress is unintentionally funny. Bad acting but it was funny. One of my favourite parts is when there is techno music playing and the sister is at the computer. Cool, some hacking, this has promise. Then we see the computer, its just a search engine. Nevertheless, she still manages to pick up a trail of breadcrumbs the police didn't find. Ha! This is one of the smaller plot holes. Other stupid things like a girl who is badly beaten, with blood pouring from her nose is asked how she is doing and then veers into family drama, eventhough her captor is still there. One would think there are slightly more pressing issues at hand. This sums up the NOW portion.

The remainer of this series stumbles along a well walked path, with so called twists you can see a mile off. In summary, if you don't watch this, you won't get FOMO.

Quite frankly one of the worst things I've seen

[mqwmp · 1/10 · 3 January 2024]

I started with high hopes, I mean if Amazon are going to invest money it's got to have something. Nope.

The story jumps around, leaving huge gaps. Characters don't ask the questions we all would instead happy to bumble around with crazy loons who don't seem to k ow why they are there. People go missing but no one seems that bothered and being a castaway is made to look pretty blooming comfy. There's a baby but no one seems concerned. People walk into the see, nah they don't seem to bothered.

I'm sure the actors have talent, Sheridan Smith is normally very good and apparently the book is a worthy read. Therefore I can only assume that the screen writers were school children who were given an hour to come up with a plot over lunch break.

It's a shame and I hope these actors get something better to work with than this garbage.

Sheridan Smith not her worst TV series

[karenadapt · 8/10 · 10 March 2024]

Not a fan of this actress - this is not her worst TV series ...close but not quite.

The series she was in Scapegoat was far worse than this series.

Sure there are some really bad judgements on plot twists - but it's set in a gorgeous island that is simply breathtaking.

In fact I would go as far to say that this was quite good - Celine was very good in it and was quite believable in her role. Sheridan was far to old to ever be considered her sister though, they look vastly different and one looks as though she is more likely to be her mother than her sister.

Also the hit woman - should have been dislodged for a better actress/actor .

More plot holes than plot

[nancyhp-10960 · 5/10 · 30 December 2023]

It's like if Neighbours and Lost had a love child. There isn't much more to say about it than that. The only difference being that Lost started good and ended poorly. This just started mid and stayed there. I guess Sheridan Smith got a free holiday out of this, it's certainly not her best work. It's definitely best to suspend disbelief on this one, don't expect anything from it and you might end up enjoying it or at the very least enduring it for the occasional bit of good story. Apparently I need to use six hundred characters for this review but there just isn't any more to say. So I'll leave it there.

Hodgepodge of lazy writing portrayed by stilted actors

[bruce_lynn · 1/10 · 29 December 2023]

Like many reviews here, I enjoy a good "isolation" adventure film and thought in 5 episodes I would find some redeeming escapism, but alas. Written and acted like a bunch of teenagers doing their class project. A collection of castaway tropes cobbled together by cardboard characters stiffly acted.

The two main protagonists are a couple of sisters who thing either shouting or breaking down is the only way to deal with anything life throws at you. One scene with the younger sister and a boat was straight from the Three Stooges. And whenever the older sister, Lori, faces a life and death situation her go-to move is to storm away in a huff.

Most of the plot is driven by the two sins of bad movie writing - stupidity and serendipity.

Read the plot summary with spoilers and save yourself 5 hours of being marooned with this shipwreck of a production.

Oh it's so crap

[malty-185-488337 · 1/10 · 28 December 2023]

I mean I didn't expect much but gave it a go it's only 5 episodes, it's shockingly bad I mean plot holes galore terrible actors terrible script terrible plot I can only imagine how bad the book is. If you want to watch 5 bad episodes of a TV series then this is for you.

Have I said it's bad yet ? It's really really bad for example they're stranded on an island in a shipping lane yet claim they can be found after a plane crash because the small is plane doesn't have a black box! Now the nearest island isn't far away as we later find out because it has a runway it's so Remote! It's just a stupid stupid TV show.

Terrible

[karenwilley · 1/10 · 1 January 2024]

Sheridan smith was sold a duffer here, she is so much better than this absolute joke of a drama, I got to episode 3 and I had to decide wether to ditch or waste another 2 hours of my life, I ploughed on , there are more holes in the plot than a carry on farce, how the hell did the captain survive at sea with a cross bow through his chest, it didn't explain how he miraculously got back to his house with out been picked up by the police or media, he was a high profile wanted man surely, and the ending did no one notice the massive house in the back ground on a deserted island, utter rubbish. The prize for the most annoying character goes to the sister, her weired half smiling snarling facial expressions were annoying, she seemed to be loving the adventure not worried over her missing sister, just don't bother , it will leave you with more questions than answers.